Funkstown bridge repairs almost finished

March 14, 2013

File photo

FUNKSTOWN — Repairs to the two-lane Funkstown bridge, which a car struck last month, are almost complete, a Maryland State Highway Administration spokeswoman said.

Workers have finished replacing the stone in the historic bridge over Antietam Creek, state highway spokeswoman Heather Keels said Thursday. Workers had been trying to use as much of the original stone as possible.

The concrete cap that goes atop the stone wall is expected to be completed next week, weather permitting, Keels said.

On Feb. 24, a car struck the bridge, creating a large hole in the bridge’s east wall, with large chunks of stone and concrete landing on the ground between the bridge and a trailer park.

The driver of the car, Joshua Harrison Gettleman, 24, of Hagerstown, was taken to Meritus Medical Center with life-threatening injuries, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.

Gettleman has since been released from the hospital, said Deputy 1st Class Carly Hose, spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office.

Keels has said bridge repairs were expected to cost approximately $70,000.